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Women more aggrieved about cost of living than men amid gender split on key election issues

A stark gender gap is emerging as Australian men and women take opposing views on some of the country’s biggest political talking points.

Labor attacks Coalition's nuclear plan costings

Stark gender divides are emerging on major political issues in Australia, with men more supportive of nuclear energy and worried about “extreme left-wing views” than women, who are more aggrieved by soaring living costs and have lower trust in government.

The lack of support among women for policies central to the election platforms of both Labor and the Coalition suggests the major parties have serious work ahead to convince voters before they’re sent to the polls in the first half of this year.

Men and women in Australia are split on major political issues.
Men and women in Australia are split on major political issues.

New analysis of quarterly “true issues” surveys and other insights collected by JWS Research across 2024 has found a strong divergence of views between the sexes, which was most apparent on the issue of nuclear energy, where support from women was 23 points lower than men.

The research showed women are more pessimistic about the state of the nation, tracking six points higher in the view that living standards have worsened over the past two years, eight points lower than men in trusting the federal government and 10 points lower in trusting courts and the justice system.

Australian women are less supportive of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s Future Made in Australia package. Picture: NewsWire/ Gaye Gerard
Australian women are less supportive of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s Future Made in Australia package. Picture: NewsWire/ Gaye Gerard

Against this backdrop of mistrust, women are also far more likely to disagree with the proposition that Australia’s tax system was working “ok” and didn’t need reform, and more opposed to expanding GST.

Support for applying GST to a wider base, such as fresh food, health, education, childcare and financial services was 10 points higher among men who were surveyed.

There was also little love among women for Labor’s Future Made in Australia policy package, which includes funnelling taxpayer dollars to build up local manufacturing and industry, with support about 11 points lower than men.

Women are also less supportive of nuclear energy, which Opposition leader Peter Dutton is promising to introduce. Picture: NewsWire / Roy VanDerVegt
Women are also less supportive of nuclear energy, which Opposition leader Peter Dutton is promising to introduce. Picture: NewsWire / Roy VanDerVegt

There was higher support among women for rent freeze and rent cap policies, and also concern about the state of hospitals and health care.

Men are 13 points more likely than women to believe “extreme left-wing views are a serious threat to our country”.

JWS Research Business Development Manager Tom Cameron said gender differences had always been a factor in people’s attitudes and positions on important policy debates, but the research confirmed Australian women and men are “diverging very significantly” on a wide range of issues.

“The quantitative data shows women have real frustration with many core parts of the status quo,” he said.

“Women are also feeling the pinch of cost of living pressures even more acutely when compared to their male counterparts.”

There’s a 23 point gap in support for nuclear between men and women in Australia. Picture: Romain Perrocheau/AFP
There’s a 23 point gap in support for nuclear between men and women in Australia. Picture: Romain Perrocheau/AFP

He said affordability concerns are the “top issue” for all Australians, but surveys had repeatedly found women “feel particularly aggrieved by how the economy is impacting their lives”.

Mr Cameron said the Coalition was going to have to be “really mindful” of the big difference in sentiment toward nuclear power, with “a lot more work to be done to convince female voters on the merits of this energy source”.

“Likewise the Albanese Government have plenty of work to do to convince women of the merits of the Future Made in Australia package and many of its component parts,” he said.

Mr Cameron said all political candidates would do well to factor in the “concerningly low regard women have for key aspects of our democratic system compared to men”.

Originally published as Women more aggrieved about cost of living than men amid gender split on key election issues

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Original URL: https://www.weeklytimesnow.com.au/news/national/women-more-aggrieved-about-cost-of-living-than-men-amid-gender-split-on-key-election-issues/news-story/d4a8f78bbd9ab41ba6b54346ca172d27